Devil May Cry
Devil May Cry is a hack and slash action game developed by Capcom Production Studio 4 and published by Capcom in 2001 for the PlayStation 2.thumb|300px|right|Trailer It is the first game in the Devil May Cry series. The events in the game are second in the series storyline's chronological order, taking place after events in Devil May Cry 3: Dante's Awakening, and before Devil May Cry 4 and Devil May Cry 2. The game has received generally positive reviews, and has sold more than 4 million copies. Set in modern times on the fictional Mallet Island, the story centers on the characters Dante and Trish and their quest to confront the demon lord Mundus. The story is told primarily through a mixture of cutscenes, which use the game's engine and several pre-rendered full motion videos. Characters * Dante * Trish * Vergil Enemies * Nelo Angelo * Nightmare * Mundus * Frost - a lizard-like demon harnessing the power of ice. A Frost can freeze Dante in place to strike him if the player is not quick enough to avoid their attacks. A host of these creatures returned in Devil May Cry 4. * Phantom - is a boss character and one of Mundus' Generals. He is a massive demon resembling a fiery tarantula with a scorpion-like tail. He appears briefly in Devil May Cry 2. * Griffon - is the boss of the Colosseum. It is a demonic bird with the power to shoot red lightning. Gameplay The gameplay consists of levels called "missions", where players must fight numerous enemies, perform platforming tasks, and occasionally solve puzzles to progress through the story. The player's performance in each mission is given a letter grade of A, B, C, or D, with an additional top grade of S. Grades are based on the time taken to complete the mission, the amount of "red orbs" gathered (the in-game currency obtained from defeated enemies), how "stylish" their combat was, item usage, and damage taken. "Stylish" combat is defined as performing an unbroken series of attacks while avoiding damage, with player performance tracked by an on-screen gauge. The more hits the player makes, the higher the gauge rises. The gauge starts at "Dull"; progresses through "Cool", "Bravo", and "Awesome"; and peaks at "Stylish". The gauge terms are similar to the grades you get at the end of the missions. When the character receives damage, the style rating resets back to "Dull". Players can also maintain their style grade by taunting enemies at close range. These combat mechanics are used for most of the game, with three areas that are exceptions. The first is an underwater first-person shooter area, where the player battles enemies with a needle gun. Secondly, during the final boss battle, the gameplay switches to a rail shooter-type environment, and finally a similar rail-shooter level is used for the character's escape from the island by airplane. The player can temporarily transform the character into a more powerful demonic creature by using the "Devil Trigger" ability. Doing so adds powers based on the current weapon and changes the character's appearance. The transformations typically increase strength and defense, slowly restore health, and grant special attacks. It is governed by the Devil Trigger gauge, which depletes as the ability is used, and is refilled by attacking enemies or taunting in normal form. Devil May Cry contains puzzles and other challenges besides regular combat. The main storyline often requires the player to find key items to advance, in a manner similar to puzzles in the Resident Evil games, as well as optional platforming and exploration tasks to find hidden caches of "orbs". Side quests, called "Secret Missions" in the game, are located in hidden or out-of-the-way areas and are not required for completion, but provide permanent power-ups. They typically challenge the player to defeat a group of enemies in a specific manner or within a time limit. Rewards for all optional puzzles and challenges come in different types of "orbs" which give bonuses such as allowing the player to purchase power-ups, extend the Devil Trigger ability, or boost total health. Story Devil May Cry begins with Dante being attacked in his office by a mysterious woman named Trish. He impresses her by easily brushing off her assault, and tells her that he hunts demons in pursuit of those who killed his mother and brother. She says the attack was a test, and that the demon emperor Mundus, whom Dante holds responsible for the deaths of his family, is planning a return. The scene jumps to their arrival at an immense castle, whereupon Trish abruptly leaps and vanishes over a high wall. Dante explores the castle and encounters the game's stock enemies, demonic marionettes. He also finds a new sword called Alastor (see also Alastor), and battles the first boss, a giant spider/scorpion demon named Phantom. Dante wins the battle, but in what becomes a recurring theme, the defeated boss monster reappears a short time later in a corridor, forcing the player to choose a narrow escape or to fight in the tight confines. After further exploration and combat, Dante battles a demon named Nelo Angelo, who impresses Dante with his confidence. The demon wins, but suddenly flees upon seeing the half-amulet Dante wears. The demon attacks twice more in later missions, and is eventually revealed to be Dante's identical twin brother, Vergil. After Vergil's final defeat, his amulet joins with his brother's half, and "Force Edge", the game's default sword which belonged to the twins' father, becomes the powerful Sparda sword. When Dante next meets Trish, she betrays him and reveals that she too is working for Mundus. But when her life is endangered, Dante chooses to save her. Saying he only did so because of her resemblance to his mother, he warns her to stay away. Yet when he finally confronts Mundus, who is about to kill Trish, Dante again chooses to save her and is injured. Mundus tries to finish him off, but Trish takes the attack instead. This unleashes Dante's full power. Dante and Mundus then battle on another plane of existence. Dante is victorious, and leaves the amulet and sword with Trish's immobile body before departing. Mundus returns and corners Dante, who is now back to his regular strength, before he can flee the island; Trish also returns and lends Dante her power. Dante defeats Mundus, who vows to return and rule the human world. When Trish tries to apologize she begins to cry, and Dante tells her it means she has become human and not just a devil, because "devils never cry". Dante and Trish escape on a plane as the island collapses. After the credits, it is revealed that Dante and Trish are working together as partners, and have renamed the shop "Devil May Cry". Development Devil May Cry began its development life as a Resident Evil 4 title for PS2, after the completion of Resident Evil 2, under the direction of Hideki Kamiya, the head developer Atsushi Inaba and "Team Little Devil". Early research and development work included a trip to Spain, to examine various castles as a basis for the game's environments. However, in prototype status, the game proved to be a radical departure from the established Resident Evil formula and the survival horror genre in general. Rather than abandon the project entirely, the premise was changed and the game eventually became Devil May Cry. Conceptual designs were handled by Makoto Tsuchibayashi. According to Kamiya, Devil May Cry was designed from the ground up around Dante's acrobatics and combat abilities. The decision was made late in the development process to change the game to a more mission-based advancement, instead of the more open-ended structure of the Resident Evil games. Devil May Cry's difficulty was intentional, according to Kamiya, who called it his "challenge to those who played light, casual games". Trivia *By beating the game on Hard Mode, players can replay the entire game as Sparda, Dante and Vergil's father. Gallery Image:Frost.png|''Frosts'' Image:DMCGriffon.png|''Griffon'' Box Art Image:DMCJapan.png|''Japan'' Image:DMCCoverScan.png|''U.S.'' Image:DMCEurope.png|''Europe'' Image:DMCJapanTheBest.png|The Best Japan Merchandise and Advertisements Image:DMC_Guidebook.png|''Guidebook'' Image:DMCGraphicFile.png|''Graphic File'' Artbook Image:DMCPreciousTears.png|''Precious Tears'' Artbook Image:DMCOST.png|OST Image:DMCComic1.png|''Comic 1'' Image:DMCComic2.png|''Comic 2'' Image:DMCComic3.png|''Comic 3'' Image:DMCStrategyGuide1.png|''Brady Games'' Strategy Guide Image:DMCStrategyGuide2.png|''Prima'' Strategy Guide Image:DMCAd.png|''Advertisement'' External Link * [http://www.capcom.co.jp/devil/devil1.html Devil May Cry] at Capcom Japan Category:Devil May Cry Games Category:Games Category:Action-Adventure Games Category:PlayStation 2 Games